And a huge part of Apple's current success is based on the tech and expertise they got from NeXT. That work underpins not just laptops and desktops but phones, tablets, set-top boxes, and more.
Apple's iPod wasn't the first mp3 player, and it for damn sure wasn't technically superior.
The iPhone was not the first smartphone, nor the first phone with a touchscreen, nor the first phone with a web browser, nor the first phone with an App Store. It arguably had a better UX than incumbents, but better UX doesn't win markets just by dint of existing.
The iMac was a cute computer that couldn't run prevalent Windows software and didn't have a floppy drive.
Recent MacBook Pros have an awful keyboard, not just aesthetically but with known hardware problems. I understand at long last they're reverting to an older, better design.
Tech and expertise don't win just because they exist.
The fact that it isn't a net good for users in most cases doesn't mean that it's trivial to do.
Maybe good marketing is really hard and you can't just "copy Apple"?
This is very true. macOS and the iPhone, for me, went from being "obviously the very best of the best" to "the lesser of all evils".
When my 2015 rMBP finally gives up the ghost and / or when 10.13 loses compatibility with the applications I use, I have no idea what I'm going to do - probably buy another working 2015 rMBP used and pray that the Linux drivers are livable by then.
I know it's ridiculous, but it helps me fall asleep at night sometimes.
- I still have mostly USB 2.0 peripherals. I don't see that changing anytime soon.
- I'm still hung up on the MagSafe adapter.
- I love the form factor. The 13" display is the perfect size, for me. I could've switched to a 15" 2015 rMBP with better specs, but I hated how big it was.
- I have no interest in using any version of macOS beyond 10.13, at present.
I'm really glad that they brought the Esc key back, especially as a pretty serious vim user. I don't know, maybe I'm stuck in the past. I'm certain that many, many people are really enjoying the new Macbook Pro 16; I just really, really like this laptop. It's the best computer I've ever owned.
- The TouchBar is terrible
I hope they'll bring back a non-TouchBar configuration when they release the "new" keyboard on a 13" MacBook Pro. I could live with both a 13" or 15" laptop, but right now the list of drawbacks is still 1-2 items too long.
This seems like a failure of imagination.
I'm not a huge Apple fan, but I lived through the Bad Old Microsoft of the '90s, and grew up on stories of IBM of the '80s.
Apple is nothing like them.
Instead of competition, Apple survives off marketing medium quality products at high prices.
I'm not sure how that's good for anyone unless they own Apple stock.